


Heart of Spades

by Cheetolord



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Alice in Wonderland Fusion, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2019-04-18
Packaged: 2019-09-01 11:17:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16764094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cheetolord/pseuds/Cheetolord
Summary: Soul Hatter lived a peaceful life. She made hats, killed the Cheshire Cat for amusement, decidedly kept to herself. That was, until Jungeun came along. Jinsoul is thrown into places in Wonderland even she has never been before and it's all because of her. She knew she should have killed her when she had the chance; should have been rid of her before her heart went as mad as her head and decided it would beat for a troublesome girl with an irksome smile as bright as magic and a soul purer than gold. Wonderland is suddenly in peril and Jinsoul finds that they are the only ones who can save it.OrIn which Jungeun takes a trip to Wonderland and has the Soul Hatter fall in love.





	1. what is normal and what is strange?

Jinsoul Hatter couldn’t understand the Cheshire Cat’s words. So, she killed him. Well, she attempted to for the six hundred and eighty-eighth time. It was a sorry thing that she couldn’t truly kill him. The Cat was full of tricks, mischievous and daring, a nuisance in her opinion, although an amusement to others. Why did they find him so amusing? She would never understand.

Nevertheless, she extracted her cane from his lifeless body that spewed not red blood, but dark chocolate, her favorite kind. It splattered onto her cobblestone floor and the sickeningly sweet smell of it wafted in the air. She expelled a drawn-out sigh and turned with a swish of her cloak to find the purple-hued beast lying upon her windowsill, perfectly alive, the epitome of peace as his ringed tail flicked against her spotless glass panes. He had a lazy smile across his mouth, stretched impossibly wide in the way she particularly despised.

“Why must you be so _insistent_ on being alive? Wouldn’t it be so much easier to allow me to kill you?” she drawled, collapsing in her favorite chair.

“Where would be the fun in that, I wonder, Jinsoul?” he said, drifting towards her on a pink cloud with all the carelessness in the world. “This is so much funner than being dead.”

“Funner isn’t a _word_ , you illiterate animal. And it’s Soul to you. Not Jinsoul,” she warned, wagging a finger in his face. “Also, you are out of favors from me. So you can leave. Ta ta.”

Jinsoul flipped her hat off of the top of her head, catching it by the very tip of her index finger and watched it spin round and round like a top. A priceless top. She would never dream of selling her hat. Not this one. Never this one.

The Cat lazily circled the air in front of her, swooping this way and that and in small circles that annoyed her to no end. He wouldn’t leave, especially not at her command. Should she kill him again? No, it would be a waste of her time. She had better things to do than murder the Cat. Over and over and over. Anyway, he seemed to find enjoyment in her attempts to murder him. And enjoyment was the last thing she desired to give him. So, she stayed her hand and willed the hat to spin faster if only to stave off the frustration in her limbs.

“Quite the contrary, my dear Hatter. I do believe you owe me one more thing. I am shocked that you don’t remember.”

Jinsoul flipped the hat back onto her head and brushed back the wild waves of her hair in indignation. She had nothing more to give to the Cat. Not a penny. …Didn’t she? Then again, she didn’t have the best of memory. Little things did tend to slip by her from time to time, like a pot on the stove or the death of her parents. The little things. Anyhow, she couldn’t be quite sure, so she deigned to listen.

“Well? What is it? What more could I _possibly_ owe you?”

The Cheshire Cat grinned and twirled in his spot, only to disappear with a poof and reappear in her face, his overgrown whiskers brushing her cheeks. “Well, what about the price for saving your hat? You couldn’t have forgotten the explosion, now.”

Jinsoul frowned and resisted the urge to skewer his spiraling eyes with the points of her nails. She didn’t enjoy being reminded of the event. It was one of the reasons why she kept forgetting that her parents were dead. She swiped at the body of the Cat, only to be met with thin air, vaporizing him like fog. He reappeared on her desk, licking his paw.

She sighed in frustration. “Alright, well, get on with it, then.”

The Cat purred his approval. “First, I need your absolute oath that my words will not be heard by anyone but you and I.”

“Mhm.” He fixed her with a stern glare and Jinsoul threw up her hands and rolled her eyes. “ _Fine_. I swear.”

Even she knew not to cross the Cheshire Cat. He was just as dangerous as she was, perhaps even more. They were the two feared entities of Wonderland after all, aside from the Queen of Spades. Needless to say, she didn’t enjoy sharing the spotlight with him, but nothing could be done about that.

The Cat nodded. “You know, this is a rather large home to live in by your lonesome, don’t you agree?” He took to the air, spiraling around the spacious room, rocketing up and up and up to finally touch the stone ceiling then floating back down to be level with her eyes. “You don’t get . . . lonely in here by yourself? With all this room?”

Jinsoul clucked her tongue. Perhaps she did get lonely. Sometimes. Only when she called out to her parents and remembered by the stifling silence that they weren’t here any longer. She kept busy with making her hats, though. So, she didn’t get sad too often, not really.

“I suppose.”

“Good. Then I guess you wouldn’t mind housing an earthling here, would you? What with all the space you have. It would cure your loneliness, too.”

“A _what_ now?”

“I’ll have her here by nightfall. I have no more favors I can ask from you now. Ta ta,” he mocked.

Jinsoul sprang from her chair in an attempt to snag his waving tail before he could disappear, but to no avail. He vanished without a sound this time and she was left with an empty fist. Why did he have to be so infuriating? And what was this nonsense about an earthling? She supposed she would find out later tonight. What was it that she had to do again? Oh, right. Birds. She drew her slingshot from her belt and strolled up the stairs to the roof.

It was a good thing she was a good shot.

***

Her doorbell rang with a screech resembling a dying cat. All offense to the Cheshire Cat, of course. She distasted visitors, so wasn’t it only fair that their arrival be announced by her favorite sound? Of course, it was. Anyhow, who was it this time? She had been preoccupied with plucking the plumes off of the carcasses of dead birds, and the sun was setting as it tended to do, annoyingly.

It had to be something important, then. But what? She slid down the banister and leaped into the air, hooking the handle of her door by the curve of her cane to yank it open in one swift motion. She landed on the balls of her feet and prepared to scare off the unbidden guest.

“ _Cat_ ,” she growled. “Did you not annoy me earlier? I could have sworn you did.”

“Yes, and you also killed me. You’ve forgotten, haven’t you? The earthling?”

Jinsoul twirled her cane and brought the end to rest against her temple, rocking on her feet, before swooping it down to be level with the Cat’s floating face. “I don’t recall.”

He smiled. “Of course you don’t. Well, you agreed, and our agreement continues to stand, so here she is.”

The Cheshire Cat drifted lazily to the side on his pink and purple cloud, and there stood a girl. The girl had on a red backpack and had yellow hair and … “No. No, no, no. You have to go. This won’t do. Goodbye now.”

Before she could shut the door, a long tail shoved it back open. “We had a deal. What is it now?”

“She has _your_ eyes. I cannot coexist in my home with something that has _your_ eyes,” Jinsoul hissed.

The Cat rolled his eyes. “She does not. If anything, your eyes resemble mine much more.”

“How _dare you_.”

An unfamiliar voice stopped Jinsoul in her tracks. “Is that a . . . dead parrot in your hand?”

Jinsoul looked down at the hand that wasn’t wielding her cane, and lo and behold there it was in her grasp. “Yes, it is. Are you daft?” she turned to the Cheshire Cat. “Is she daft?”

“No, I’m not . . . daft. It’s not normal to be carrying a dead parrot around.”

Jinsoul swiveled her attention back to the girl with the Cheshire Cat’s eyes. She was just as annoying as he was. Cat spawn. She had to be. She leaped forward without warning until she was face to face with the girl. She looked frightened. Jinsoul grinned and whispered, “Who are you to tell me what is normal and what is strange?”

“Alright, that is quite enough,” the Cat interrupted, winding his tail around her waist and pulling her back. “Rule number one. You are not allowed to kill this earthling.”

“Wait, she’s going to kill me?”

“I am making sure she refrains from doing exactly that, child. Shush.”

Who was the Cat to determine who she could or could not kill? Jinsoul would kill this earthling, even if out of simple spite for the Cheshire Cat. She unwound his vile tail from around her waist in pure disgust and turned to him with malice in her eyes.

“That wasn’t part of the deal, now was it? You put her in _my_ custody, I can do whatever I desire. And _I_ desire to kill _her_.”

A sudden exclamation from the girl in question had her jerk in surprise. “You’re the Mad Hatter! I thought . . . I thought the Mad Hatter was a man.”

Jinsoul lashed out without warning, her cane catching its target and sending the girl stumbling into her chest with a yelp that resembled that of a kicked puppy. Puppies were better than cats she supposed. She brought her arm around the girl’s waist and pulled her flush against her, noses brushing and breaths mingling. “The Mad Hatter I am not. Soul Hatter is the name. But only the Hatter to _you_. Do we have an understanding?”

The girl looked afraid, though not as afraid as Jinsoul would like her to be. She would be soon. Everyone feared her sooner or later. Completely. It wasn’t a question, just a simple fact. She didn’t mind it, not one bit.

“Yes,” the girl whispered.

“Soul—”

“—Ah-ah-ah,” Jinsoul tutted, waving a finger in the Cat’s direction. Her eyes never left the girl’s. “Yes, _what?_ ”

She could hear the girl swallow. “Yes, Hatter.”

Jinsoul laughed and spun the girl away from her, clapping her gloved hands in glee. She liked when people agreed with her. It made things so much easier. “Wonderful! That is _all_ I required! She may stay. _You_ may not. Leave.”

“I have your word you will not kill her?” the Cat warned.

Jinsoul turned on her heel and swooped her hat off of her head, bowing with a flourish of her hand and a swish of her hat behind her. “You have my word, Cheshire Cat. She will not be harmed by my hands.”

The Cat’s eyes narrowed suspiciously and Jinsoul only smiled at him. “Hm. Well, then I suppose you should know her name—”

“—Jungeun. It’s Jungeun. I can speak, too, you know.”

Jinsoul tossed her hat back onto her head, leaning towards the girl. “What a _strange_ name. Strange clothes, too. What material is this?”

“You’re the one with strange clothes, you’re wearing a suit and a top hat! And your shoes are like ten feet tall!”

“And what _exactly_ ,” she prodded a slim little shoulder, “is wrong with _that_?”

Interestingly, the girl wasn’t backing away. She did remind her of someone she had been briefly acquaintanced with, though she didn’t quite remember the name or when exactly that had been. That would be asking too much of her. It was in the bothersome way the girl stood up to her, looking slighted, but unwilling to back down. At least, that was what she thought it was.

“Okay ladies, I will be taking my leave now. It seems that you are in good hands, Jungeun. I’ll visit!”

“Don’t bother. No one desires your presence.”

The Cat said nothing and only offered a final, mocking grin before fading away, his uselessly wide smile imprinted into Jinsoul’s mind. She’d have to wash it out someday. It wouldn’t do having something like that lingering in the back of her brain. It was horrendous.

She shuddered, then tossed the dead parrot into the girl’s hands. To her credit, she didn’t scream. “You must know how to cook bird.”

“Sorry, what?”

Jinsoul ignored her. “ _Marvelous._ I have work to complete. No time to invest in cooking a meal. That shall be _your_ task from here. on. out. Good? Magnificent.”

She didn’t spare the girl another glance. As she’d expressed, she had work to do.

***

Jungeun didn’t know how to fry an egg, nevermind cook a half-plucked parrot. She guessed that this was what she got for going to that crazy old fortune teller on the corner of the street. But then again, how was she supposed to know that the old crone was capable of actual magic? She still wasn’t sure if this wasn’t just a dream or an insane hallucination. What if she’d drugged her? What if her real body was tied up in some creepy old basement left to die with the rats? What if she was about to be murdered?

The last thing she remembered was feeling really, really sleepy, then watching the world spin around her, hearing the fortune teller’s words ring in her head before she’d blacked out: _Seek the Hatter and answer the call and only then shall you find the Wandering Man and return whence you came._ She knew she shouldn’t have drunk that tea. Where had her street smarts gone to when she’d needed them?

Jungeun had woken up in a clearing, or something along those lines, surrounded by flowers that could talk. It hadn’t been a moment later that a strange, purple cat with swirling eyes appeared and offered to lead her into the village with what she would learn was his trademark grin across his face.

What could she have done other than follow him? It wasn’t as if she’d had even the slightest idea of where she was. She wasn’t sure when exactly it had occurred to her that this was Wonderland and the cat she was following was the Cheshire Cat, but when it had, it had all neatly fallen into place.

The Cheshire Cat had then led her into a nice looking tavern, talked to the nice looking woman that seemed to be the one running the place, then told her he would be back with somewhere for her to stay by late afternoon and that the lady would take care of her. He’d upheld his promise to the tee.

She’d gotten food and drink and even a room to stay in for the time being. He’d returned just as the sun had started to set and had ushered her to follow him out of the village, through the opposite end from where she had come from, and up a tall hill where she could see, at the very top of it, a large, spiraling tower.

“Is that where I’m staying?”

“Yes, I believe it would be the best accommodation for you.”

  


“Who lives there?”

The Cheshire Cat had only waved his ringed tail. “Oh, I am confident you will know when you meet them.”

And Jungeun had recognized the Hatter despite the fact that she was quite clearly a woman, not a man. The hat, of course, had been a dead give away, although she was much . . . more attractive and well-dressed than she’d expected the Mad Hatter to be.

She was more clean-cut and monochromatic in style, unlike the colorful way the Hatter was depicted in the books. Even her makeup was dark, especially against the clear paleness of her skin, though no less crazy in the way it was done with her smeared lipstick and smudged eyeshadow.

It also hadn’t taken long for her to realize that her unproportionate height was simply due to the three-inch platform shoes she wore. Her hair was the craziest of all, tangled and messy and a dark, navy blue in color that complimented her overall color scheme, and despite the insanity of her appearance, Jungeun hadn’t been able to take her eyes off of her.

However, regardless of the Hatter’s appearance, what the _hell_ was she supposed to do with the dead parrot in her hands? The tower was massive but cluttered. Everything in it looked as if they’d never had a singular place to stay, not even the furniture. The couch was askew on a twisted oriental rug, a lamp looked just about ready to tip over the leg of a toppled coffee table that looked far too expensive, and the most noticeable items of all were the hats.

There were hats everywhere, hats of all kinds. Small hats, top hats, floral hats, hats the size of a thimble, hats hanging off of a chandelier, hats scattered across chairs and tables. There was not a hat on the floor, however. Common courtesy for hard work, she supposed.

Still, she couldn’t seem to find the kitchen. There had to be a kitchen somewhere in this tower, right? The Hatter had to eat sometime. It didn’t look as if she ever left the tower despite being well-dressed, and unless there was junk food in Wonderland, she’d have to cook. It was only when Jungeun accidentally kicked an abandoned pot on the ground, sending it clanging away, that she realized she’d found the kitchen.

What she saw made her scream.

“What? What is it? What is it _now_?”

“The C-Cheshire Cat! He’s dead!”

It didn’t occur to her to question where the Hatter had abruptly materialized from or to question the feathers clinging onto her clothes and in her hair. She could only stare at the lifeless body of the Cheshire Cat with his unsettling grin and blank, staring eyes, a tell-tale hole skewered in his side which still oozed blood.

The Hatter seemed unperturbed, only annoyed, and even then, not by much. Jungeun watched in horror as she stepped over the pot she had kicked, grabbed the dead Cat by his tail and lifted him into the air, stiff body swinging like a pendulum.

She was going to be sick.

“Please,” the Hatter said distastefully, “if he were _that_ easy to kill, he would have been dead long, _long_ ago. I attempt to murder him several times a week. It’s only vague hope that I’d get lucky one day and manage to _finally_ be rid of him once and for all, but alas, I haven’t hit the jackpot,” she sighed wistfully. “This is another one of his numerous little tricks. I believe this was from this afternoon . . . or was it two days ago? I can never remember.” Jungeun blinked at the Hatter who only tilted her head and raised her brow in response. “What? Do you require proof? I can give you proof.”

Oh God, please, she wasn’t going to—she couldn’t really be—. Jungeun retched dryly as the Hatter ran her fingers through the Cheshire Cat’s blood and brought it to her mouth, licking it off of her fingers. She smacked her lips with a pleased grin, though it faded when she caught Jungeun’s expression.

“What? It is only dark chocolate. Here, have a taste!”

“No! Are you insane?!” Jungeun shrieked, backpedaling desperately.

“That I am,” she said, clearly amused.

Jungeun closed her eyes. “I’m staying in a house owned by a murderer.”

“Quite precisely,” the Hatter replied cheerily, offering her a maniacal smile. Without warning, she swiped her hat off of her head with her free hand, and turned it upside down. Jungeun watched in amazement as it grew in size in front of her very eyes. The Hatter looked at the very realistic-looking dead body of the Cheshire Cat with what Jungeun thought was wistfulness in her eyes, then simply let go of his tail and dropped the corpse, head first, into the hat, as a magician would with a rabbit. The hat then shrunk to its original size and the Hatter flicked it back onto her head with a satisfied grin. It was as if nothing had happened. She turned back to Jungeun with a critical eye that made her flinch. “Now, onto things of more importance.”

Jungeun drew back cautiously, suddenly deeply afraid. “What?”

The Hatter only frowned and gestured towards her hand. “Why haven’t you cooked the parrot yet?”


	2. my reputation precedes me.

The village was in chaos. Well, that was what she heard from the Cheshire Cat. She could never be certain with him. No one could. 

He claimed that the Snow Queen had been abducted the night before with nothing but a note left on pristine bedsheets. And, of course, the person mentioned in the note was none other than the girl. 

It was suspicious, wasn’t it? That just three days after the girl’s arrival, the Snow Queen would be taken by an unknown entity? Strange, indeed.

Jinsoul knew the Snow Queen personally, although the last time she’d talked to her, she had been a princess and nothing more. Her given name was Haseul, and she was the one person that Jinsoul had been able to stomach in her twenty-whatever years of life.

“Well, it seems that Jungeun must be the one to save our beloved Snow Queen,” the Cheshire Cat said, allowing the note to float into Jinsoul’s hand.

_ If you desire your Queen safe, then the earthling shall enter the Lost Forest. Only then will the beloved Snow be returned into the peoples’ embrace. — The Wandering Man _

Jinsoul flicked the paper away with the nonchalance of one unconcerned. Why should she be concerned? This was the girl’s business, not hers. She had nothing to do with the mess. Yes, the Snow Queen was kind and gentle and certainly did not deserve to be subjected to abduction, but Jinsoul wasn’t the one being called upon, it was the little earthling.

  
  


She expressed to the Cat exactly that. “Why are you telling  _ me _ this? Go tell the girl. She should know, should she not? I have nothing to with the note.”

“Au contraire, my dear Hatter,” the Cat purred. “Once again, you are mistaken.”

Jinsoul rose from her seat in a sudden bout of anger, powerful magic glowing from the palm of her hand and sparking from the tips of her fingers. “When you asked me to house this earthling, I agreed. The agreement never touched upon my leaving this tower. My home. If you  _ dare _ attempt to trick me into this, I swear I will pull you apart limb by limb and mount your ugly little head on the wall if it is the  _ last _ thing I do. Do I make myself  _ clear _ ?” she snarled.

The Cheshire Cat had sensibly backed away, his spiraling purple eyes glinting with malevolence, although he said nothing in response. Their abilities in regards to magic were equally matched, and it was for that exact reason they refrained from using it towards one another despite Jinsoul’s constant attempts to kill him by physical means. 

Physical violence and magical violence were two vastly different categories indeed. However, Jinsoul knew when the Cat was crossing a line that should not be crossed, in which she had no choice but to showcase the extent of her power in order to defend her territory.

“Jinsoul, please, allow me to explain,” he began carefully, seeming to regain the composure he had lost. “You know as well as I do that Wonderland is not to be trifled with, especially not if she must venture into the Lost Forest. She would never return. The Queen would never return. And you have heard stories of The Wandering Man, we know nothing of him. The village is in mayhem, and without the Snow Queen, it will continue to be so. I cannot go with Jungeun because I must keep the little order there is left. The only one with magic powerful enough to ensure her safety is you.” 

He extended a paw towards her, though he abstained from touching her. “And besides, you knew her once.” Jinsoul tensed. “So please, at least consider it. This is larger than you and I.”

“What’s going on? Is there something wrong?”

Jinsoul cleared her throat hastily as Jungeun stepped into the room with a needle and thread in hand. She focused her attention on taking off her hat and spinning it in contemplation, effortlessly balancing it on the tip of her finger. What the Cat said had made sense. There truly was no one else that could match the strength of the magic they held, and Wonderland was a strange and dangerous place. 

The forest in question was named the Lost Forest because those who wandered into its depths rarely made their way out, and the Wandering Man…the Wandering Man was a widely known mystery. Even the Cheshire Cat knew nothing of him except for the fact that he resided in the depths of the woods.

“Have you been sowing?” the Cheshire Cat asked.

“Yeah, she,” Jungeun pointed at Jinsoul, “said I might as well be useful if I’m going to  _ stay and annoy me with your presence _ . She complained that I was breathing too loudly yesterday. I’m learning how to make hats.”

“One, I do not sound like that. Two, she is  _ terrible _ . I have never seen anything like it. I may as well be teaching a dead parrot. I do believe she thinks that her fingers are  _ pin cushions _ . I had an inkling she was daft but not to  _ this _ extent.”

The Cat had an odd look in his eyes, something that Jinsoul couldn’t quite decipher—not that she had ever been good at deciphering anything related to other living beings. She had never found the need to acquire such skills. It wasn’t as if she had many visitors, or that she ever left her house to encounter other walking, talking things. Jinsoul yawned as the Cat explained the incident to the girl who only seemed to become increasingly terrified as he went on.

“So, I-I have to go and save a Queen? In a lost forest? From Slenderman?”

“No, no, the  _ Wandering _ Man. And  _ The _ Lost Forest,” the Cheshire Cat corrected.

Jinsoul was quite enjoying the spectacle unraveling in front of her. It wasn’t often she received such entertainment. It didn’t mean she had been lonely. She didn’t get lonely. She didn’t. It was simply amusing to watch the Cat attempt to explain things to the earthling. Yes, that was it. That was all there was to it.

“I can’t. I don’t know anything about this place.”

“That is why the  _ Hatter _ will accompany you. Isn’t that right?”

Jinsoul opened her mouth to firmly reject his sly approach, the sneaky bastard, but then the girl caught her eye. She looked uncharacteristically small and lost, alone in this world. Was it empathy? 

Jinsoul felt something tug in her chest, a nudge in a different direction that she was more than reluctant to take, but when the girl looked towards her with eyes so imploring and stance so vulnerable… She rolled her eyes with a dramatic sigh. “ _ Fine _ . You win. Congratulations, Cat. But,” she raised a finger, “this means  _ you _ owe  _ me _ a favor.”

The Cheshire Cat watched her for a moment, then nodded. “Agreed. You leave by tomorrow morning.”

***

Jinsoul wasn’t quite certain anymore if she could hold her oath. She was certain she wouldn’t have been able to restrain herself if Jungeun wasn’t the only one who could save the Snow Queen. She couldn’t have meddling villagers on her hill. Just the thought of it made her want to beat out her own brains.

She would have never thought it possible for someone to be more bothersome than the Cheshire Cat, and yet, she was living with this anomaly. The girl couldn’t cook, couldn’t clean without breaking something, she could barely make her way around the tower without becoming utterly lost and calling for help—which was confusing because the tower didn’t contain many rooms, though the hallways did tend to twist and turn in an interesting fashion. Not only that, but she talked incessantly about anything and everything and Jinsoul craved the lost silence of her home.

“What’s the Lost Forest? Who’s the Wandering Man? Why do I have to save some Snow Queen? Who is the Snow Queen?”

“Quiet!” Jinsoul bellowed, conjuring a pillow and hurling it into the girl’s face. She should be thankful it wasn’t a boulder on her head. “Enough with your incessant questions! Leave me be!”

The girl merely rubbed her nose and hugged the pillow to her chest, resting her chin on top of it. “Sorry.”

“You should be.”

They were situated in her work chamber, surrounded by pieces of fabric and ribbon and cloth strewn everywhere like decoration and looking to be almost enchanted in the fading light of dusk. Jinsoul was working on a new project, a hat made entirely of feathers, hence the reason for the dead parrot two nights ago. 

It was finally quiet, peaceful like it should be, the way she liked it. Why should it be any other way? She was the sole owner of this tower, wasn’t she? She had every right to tell someone to leave or to shut their mouths. But now, something wriggled in the back of her mind, something that wouldn’t leave her alone, and she huffed in annoyance and glanced up at the girl.

Jinsoul frowned. The girl looked dejected as if she had stolen away her favorite toy. She had only told her to be quiet, there was no reason why she should look so melancholic. It occurred to her then that she was younger than her. Perhaps, in her world people, her age still played with toys? That could be it. 

Jinsoul thought for a moment, contemplating the dilemma, then remembered the stuffed owl she had sewn together years ago. Maybe if she gave it to her she would stop pouting like a child and disturb her work. Jinsoul snapped her fingers at the revelation, the toy replacing the pillow the girl had been hugging instantaneously.

“It is yours,” she said, returning to the work at hand. “Perhaps you will be less  _ infuriating _ with something to amuse yourself with.”

“Alice.”

Jinsoul scowled. “Who?”

“Her name. Alice,” the girl repeated.

Jinsoul swooped the needle through the fabric. “What a truly  _ vile _ name. I should have never subjected it to your cruelty.”

“It fits,” she said, smiling. “Trust me.” Then, “You aren’t as mean as you pretend you are, are you?”

Jinsoul wasn’t mean. She wasn’t. She didn’t have anyone to be mean to, anyhow. Yes, she was mean to Jungeun, but only because she was unbearably annoying. Even her breathing made Jinsoul want to pick her up and catapult her out of the window and watch as she… _ no _ . She had to be kept alive.  _ Alive _ . She had to save the Snow Queen.

“Considering your attempts to burn down my tower with what you call  _ cooking _ , you do not have any right to call  _ me _ mean. You, on the other hand, are absolutely insufferable.”

A screeching cry of a dying cat echoed throughout the tower, bouncing off the walls and spiraling through hallways, and Jinsoul sprung from her seat and shot through the open window in fury. She was six stories in the air. The wind whistled around her, pulling at her clothes and tugging at locks of her hair, as the ground sped towards her. She ignored Jungeun’s startled cry.

One too many people in the span of two days. Was she losing the air of frightening mystery? She had never found the need to deal with so many annoyances in her life. She would kill them. She landed with the force of a comet, the land around her exploding into sailing chunks of grass and dirt, finding herself standing in the middle of a self-made crater. She dusted herself off and floated herself out of the hole. Should she kill them with magic or with her bare hands? It was quite the dilemma.

“Hatter! You have to let us come with you!”

Jinsoul froze in her tracks. Where were these female specimen coming from? She allowed her feet to touch the ground at the sight of two girls standing side-by-side in front of her door. One was tall, the other short, wearing matching fitted suits of red and yellow complete with blue ties, shiny, black dress shoes, and red fedoras. Jinsoul wondered what she’d ever done to deserve this in her life. What had she done so wrong for such tragedies to befall her? And why did they seem unafraid of her violently abrupt appearance?

“Oh, how rude of us. Allow us to introduce ourselves,” the small one said. “My name is Dee, and this is Dum. But those are our family names. You can call us Gowon and Olivia. It’s much easier that way.”

Jinsoul thought they sounded familiar, which was surprising because people usually didn’t seem familiar. Where had she heard of them? Dee and Dum. Dee and… 

The front door opened and Jungeun stepped out. “Tweedledee and Tweedledum, right?”

“You’ve heard of our parents!” the small one exclaimed once again.

Jinsoul recoiled. “The two of you are  _ related _ ?”

“Oh no, no. Our fathers just shared the same first names and happened to dress alike. They weren’t related at all. We’re not related either. That would be disgusting,” Gowon said, curling her lip before turning to Jungeun. “You must be the earthling. It’s a pleasure to meet you…”

“Jungeun. It’s nice to meet you, too.”

Jinsoul watched as she shook hands with the girl who giggled like an absolute  _ child _ when she kissed the back of her hand. What did this blonde-haired dwarf think she was, a prince? The sight was more vile than the name Jungeun had given the bear. At least the tall one seemed to share her sentiment; she looked positively disgusted. Jinsoul had had enough. She flicked her wrist in annoyance, conjuring a powerful gust of wind to swirl around them and sending them sprawling to the ground, shielding their eyes and covering their mouths and noses.

“If it has not occurred to you as of yet, I am the Hatter and this is my tower. You best have a good explanation for your reason to be here. I am in no  _ mood  _ for foolish trifles.”

The tiny one, of course, was the first to recover. She scrambled towards Jinsoul and clung to her arm like a leech. Jinsoul nearly turned her into dust.

“Please, Hatter. You have to let us come with you to save the Queen!”

Jinsoul shook her off in distaste. “ _ I _ have to do  _ nothing _ of the sort.”

“We know the Lost Forest better than anyone in Wonderland,” the tall one said, dusting her suit off and picking up her hat. “You would save precious time if you allowed us to come with you.”

Jinsoul found the offer fairly attractive. If it meant spending less time in the grimes of a forest, sleeping on nothing but filth, she supposed there couldn’t be much harm in it. She eyed the two girls. And who was to say they had to return alive? Perhaps if there was to be a little…accident? Yes, that would do. Two fewer annoyances in Wonderland. She could live up to her father’s name, she thought sarcastically.

“Fine. We leave at dawn.”

“We do? Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

Jinsoul cleared her throat. “Would you kindly pry your  _ rat _ off of me?”

They only laughed without knowing the thoughts that ran through Jinsoul’s mind. She let them.

***

They set off just as the sun touched the horizon. Jungeun pulled her borrowed cloak closer to her body and wriggled her shoulders in hopes that the straps of her backpack would be more bearable. She skirted around the crater that the Hatter had created with her own body, frowning at the culprit who simply floated over it with a crazed smile, humming tunelessly.

Jungeun yelped in surprise, stumbling as her foot caught on loose debris, only to feel a somewhat steady arm around her waist and a hand cupping her own. She caught a whiff of something that oddly reminded her of some kind of tropical fruit, and looked up to see the small blonde-haired girl with her bright smile.

“Careful now. We can’t have you injured at the very beginning of our journey,” she said.

Jungeun blinked. “Oh, thank you.”

Gowon smiled again and bowed, pressing her red fedora to her chest. “My pleasu - ow!”

The tall woman jerked as if she’d been hit, stumbling to the ground rather ungracefully, quite chuckles coming from Olivia. Jungeun turned accusingly to the Hatter who smirked in return, her form of an apology being a one-shouldered shrug, before turning on her heel and continuing down the hill. Jungeun shook her head and sighed before helping Gowon up and dusting her off. It was the least she could do for the Hatter’s childish behavior.

“Serves you right for flirting,” Olivia said, bypassing them.

“Meanie!”

Jungeun found herself trailing ahead of the pair who bantered back and forth with the ease of old friends, drawing closer and closer to the Hatter who seemed to be slowing. There was some kind of hesitance to her steps as if she were dreading something at the bottom of the hill. 

All Jungeun could see was the village spread out before them. There wasn’t anything to be scared of, was there? It certainly didn’t look that way. 

The village looked as peaceful as the ones painted in storybooks. Lamps burned softly in front of log houses with tendrils of smoke from hearths curling up into the air smelling of warmth, and a few men, silently leaving for work, traipsed through the dusty, well-worn roads. 

She was walking beside the Hatter now, and even from the respectable distance between them, she could feel the tension strung within her. What was it that was making her so uncomfortable?

“Are you okay?”

The Hatter whirled around to face her, eyes wild and gesticulations sporadic. “Okay? Of course, I am. Why should I be otherwise?”

“I - You just seem a little…tense. That’s all.”

“Ha! Tense. I, the Hatter, tense? What for? Leave me be from your useless meddling.”

The Hatter stalked down the remainder of the hill without another word, her tall hat bobbing up and down like a boat in midnight waters. Jungeun stood and watched her fluttering tailcoats and the rise and fall of her cane until a soft voice brought her back from her silent musings.

“My father told me that Soul Hatter isn’t a cruel woman. We have to try and understand her,” Olivia said.

Jungeun shook her head. “How do you understand a mind like that?”

The weight on her shoulders was suddenly lifted, and Jungeun glanced behind her to see Gowon urging her to slip her arms from the constricting straps of her red backpack, and once she did what was asked, the girl shouldered the burden herself. Jungeun wondered how she was doing it, considering the fact that the backpack was almost as big as she was. 

“Simple,” she said with a knowing tilt of her head and what Jungeun was coming to recognize as her signature smile. “You wiggle your way into the heart. That’s the easiest route to the mind, you know. And even the Hatter,” she tapped her chest with a wink, “has one of those.”

Jungeun found that despite the Hatter’s show of bravado, she stood waiting on the outskirts of the village, playing with flames that jumped from fingertip to fingertip as if they were alive. She was leaning against a fence post, completely immersed in the magical fire that burned atop ivory skin, and Jungeun couldn’t help but be intrigued by the flames that began to shift in hue, dancing to a rhythm that only the Hatter knew. It was when she stepped on a dead leaf that the woman’s gaze snapped up. Had her eyes always been that color? 

The Hatter’s eyes were undoubtedly orange, beautiful and enchanting, and Jungeun decided that it was another one of her tricks. After all, she’d changed the color of her hair, too. Rather than wild waves of blue, she’d settled for straight locks of violet, no less attractive on her than before. Her purple pinstripe suit matched the color scheme. 

Jungeun thought she saw something close to a genuine smile written in the curve of the Hatter’s lips as she opened her palm, eyes never leaving hers, the individual flames merging into one, then abruptly closing her hand into a fist, throwing them into darkness with a crackle that reminded her of fireworks, sparks erupting from the spaces between her fingers.

“Do we have time to spare or have we reached our destination already?” Olivia called out.

“Could you not be mean for two whole seconds?” Gowon retorted.

They were an odd pair to be sure. Other than their matching outfits, everything from their physical attributes to their eccentric personalities were strikingly different. Their chemistry was something else. Where Olivia was tall, Gowon was short, and where Gowon was clingy and energetic, Olivia was cool and aloof. 

“You don’t want me to carry my backpack?” Jungeun asked.

Gowon merely shook her head, waving a teasing finger in her direction. “You save our Queen and I would carry a boulder through the Lost Forest if you asked me to. Your little backpack is nothing.”

Olivia was abruptly herding her away from Gowon who rolled her eyes as Jungeun was dragged away, and she caught the girl sticking her tongue out before Olivia regained her attention. “Ignore her. Just think of her as a pack mule.”

“I heard that!”

“You were meant to!” Olivia called back. “Anyway, how are you doing? I doubt the Hatter ever asked you that, forget the Cheshire Cat. It must be a lot for you. I hear your land is much different from ours.”

Jungeun found herself lost for words at such basic kindness as to ask about her well-being. In a way, the fact that no one had bothered to ask about how she was feeling had helped in that she didn’t need to think about the impossible, crazy situation she was in. 

She’d always been one to act first and think later, particularly due to the fact that she was a slow processor. It took a while for things to really soak in for her. At least, it had been that way when her brother disappeared without a trace seven years ago. 

She’d been searching for him ever since. It was the reason why it had led her to the weird fortune teller and thrown her head-first into this mess. At any rate, she just had to deal with it and play along to Wonderland’s rules; even if it meant traveling with a beautiful, crazy woman with a top hat who murdered when things got annoying—which was inherently terrifying on its own and probably would have made a great horror movie. Jungeun wondered where her sense of safety had gone to.

“I’m…managing. Thanks for asking.”

“It’s not a problem. We’re not all barbarians,” Olivia said, staring pointedly at the back of the Hatter’s head then twisting around to glare at Gowon.

Olivia reminded her of a child pretending to be a grown-up in the way that it was clear that she was younger than even Jungeun, but acted as calm and level-headed as an adult. It was endearing nonetheless, and Jungeun knew she wasn’t the only one that thought so. 

The look in Gowon’s eyes, no matter how she attempted to mask it through her unrestrainable cheekiness, told of deep love and brimming affection that she was reluctant to display for the world to see. Jungeun would keep quiet about it of course. It wasn’t her place either way.

A stranger’s voice broke Jungeun out of her musings. “Y-You, you’re the Mad Hatter!”

Further up on the road a unique sight greeted them. A man was scrambling backward in the dirt of the road, gazing fearfully up at the silhouette of a woman donning a top hat and suit, looking much larger than she really was. 

The Hatter stood silently, one hand perched on top of her cane, the other in her pocket, not saying a word, and Jungeun felt Olivia brush past her, approaching the frightened man and explaining something to him as she helped him to his feet. The man threw fearful, dirty glances in the Hatter’s direction before hurrying past them, head lowered and shoulders hunched like that of a hunted animal.

“Hatter—” Olivia ventured.

A low chuckle rumbled through the tension in the air. “I see my reputation precedes me.”

She continued down the road past Olivia, spinning her cane and taking long, careless strides. Gowon’s hand, gentle at the small of her back, propelled her forward. Jungeun wondered why the Hatter’s retreating figure looked so sad.


	3. i will show you civility.

Jinsoul regretted not turning the man into a cockroach when she had had the chance. He had been annoying, stepping in her way and tumbling to the ground all on his own accord. He had been particularly annoying when he called her the Mad Hatter as if he hadn’t died long ago. She would never understand such foolishness. 

More irritating than the man was the bean with a red fedora. The tall one, she couldn’t care less about, particularly because she didn’t draw attention to herself, but the small one. The small one Jinsoul would have no trouble with skinning alive. The fact that she seemed so completely smitten by the earthling was dreadfully annoying. 

Why? That, she wasn’t quite sure of. All she knew was that she wanted the bean gone, plucked, thrown across Wonderland. It would be so simple to snap her fingers and have her neck twisted and blame it on the Cheshire Cat. Although, she suspected that the beanstalk (yes, the bean and the beanstalk, that would do) and the girl were not daft to  _ that  _ extent. They were close, but not quite. It was a shame, really.

They were finally exiting the village with its little houses and pathetic gardens next to the dirt roads and Jinsoul couldn’t be happier. No, wait, she could. She could be much happier if it wasn’t for the Cheshire Cat and his devious methods into coercing her to do his bidding. 

She could be much happier alone in her tower with nothing to bother her but the occasional appearance of the Cat and a nice, comfortable bed to sleep in. She didn’t doubt that they would have to sleep on grass and dirt this night.

They finally broke out of the village and Jinsoul realized how much she had forgotten about Wonderland, how headachingly colorful Wonderland was. They were atop a gradual incline, not as high as her hill of course, but high enough to see miles and miles of giant mushrooms looming in the horizon, which wasn’t bad at all considering the bleakness of their appearance, except for the fact that they were behind miles and miles of disgustingly bright flowers that could  _ talk. _

“That’s where I appeared,” the girl said behind her.

“That would explain your  _ incessant _ need to flap those lips of yours.”

The beanstalk sidled up to her side, the nauseating flash of red and yellow making her impossible to ignore. “We must be wary of them, the flowers. They have…persuasive properties.”

Jinsoul upturned a palm with a sly grin, flames burning hot and fiery with gradually increasing size. “Not if they’re burned to a crisp.”

“That isn’t a good idea. You don’t think others have tried that before?” the bean said, appearing on the other side of the beanstalk. “They’ll just sap your magic. With your strength, you’ll probably die.”

Jinsoul glowered at the information. She didn’t think it could be possible for this ridiculous journey to become any more vexing, but clearly, she was wrong about many things. She sighed, flexed her palm, and shot the ball of fire into the air, sending it exploding above them with a resounding crack, the embers falling around them quickly turning to ash. She grumbled under her breath and started down the decline. 

The sun was rising in front of them, over the forest of giant mushrooms and gradually casting its light over the flowers. They began to sing. Jinsoul’s hands were aflame before she realized it, ready to burn the entire field to its roots. Two pairs of hands latched onto each arm.

“Woah, no. We could use your magic  _ later _ , Hatter. We can’t have you die yet,” the bean said.

“Would you like to be known as the one who died via talking flowers?”

The beanstalk was right she supposed. That would be a disgraceful death, one that she wasn’t particularly willing to indulge in. She honored her life more than mouth-flapping flowers (she thought she did anyway), and she could pluck them as she went by. Yes, that would sate the fury in her being; for now, at least. She threw off clinging fingers from her arms and allowed the flames to seep back into her skin, the warmth tingling through her veins. 

“Is that the only magic you can do?” the girl asked.

The bean sprang at the girl, slapping a tiny hand across her mouth. “Shut up!”

Jinsoul spun on her heel abruptly and laughed. “The  _ only _ magic I can do? Earthling, I am one of the most powerful wielders of magic in this land. And you believe that  _ fire _ is the sole element I may control?”

Jinsoul lifted a hand, fingers swirling the air. Charming spheres of ice no larger than buttons floated among them, glinting in the new sun, casting spectrums of the rainbow in every direction before shattering to powder which sunk into the ground as water. She tapped her foot on the ground and vines flew from the earth to encase them, leaves springing from their base. The cage shot high into the air at which the girl, the beanstalk, and the bean all screamed. 

Jinsoul smiled and snapped her fingers, flames running across the vines and turning them into ash. They fell through the air, the three nuisances screeching like dying cats all along the way before Jinsoul made a fist and air cushioned them momentarily before disappearing and sending the three sprawling onto the ground and Jinsoul gently bouncing on the balls of her feet with a proud grin.

“You just could not restrain yourself, could you?” the beanstalk groaned.

“How was I supposed to know she was going to do something like that?”

“She’s the Hatter! You’ve lived with her! Are you insane?!” the bean squeaked (well, that was what it sounded like in her head).

“Bean, beanstalk,  _ earthling _ . Shall we wait here till the sun makes its descent? Do not confuse my words, I have no  _ qualms _ about that. In fact, I would much rather do that—”

“—No! No, that…is not necessary,” the beanstalk said donning a strained smile. “Please, after you.”

Jinsoul rolled her eyes to the repulsively blue sky but chanced a glance at the girl. Her blonde hair was mussed about her pretty little head and dirt was smudged across one of her cheeks like war paint. The end of her strange little coat was singed, and yet. And yet and yet the girl managed to remain somewhat attractive as if no amount of dirt or dust could alter her charm. It frustrated her. That was the only emotion the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach could be. 

Halfway down the hill, a low thrum of chatter filled the air, gradually becoming amplified as they neared the talking flowers, and Jinsoul wondered if she possessed the inhuman strength to regulate her temper through the field of the vile specimen. She decided that if she managed, it would most likely be the single-most greatest accomplishment of her life. She also decided that it was highly unlikely that she would manage. The thought was what counted, wasn’t it?

When she finally set foot onto the land of the talking flowers, there was a collective hush. It was almost eerie, although Jinsoul couldn’t care less. All she wanted to do was get this petty quest or whatever this was over with so she could return to blissful solitude. Solitude…what a wonderful word it was.

“Could it be?”

“The Hatter!”

“The Hatter!”

Jinsoul recoiled in disgust. Why did they react in such a way? Yes, she was well-known throughout the land, however, she had been expecting more of screams of terror and attempts to flee in the opposite direction of whence she came. The chanting of her name and the silence was something else altogether. 

“Why are they like that?” the girl whispered.

An angel trumpet raised itself from its branch. “The earthling! Ho!”

“Dee and Dum also!” a carnation piped. “You seek the Snow Queen and the Wandering Man, do you not?”

Jinsoul supposed that now would be an excellent time to leave. The earthling seemed to believe differently. She stepped forward as if unafraid, although Jinsoul caught the trembling of her fists at her sides, her head raised and posture ramrod straight. Even she had to admit that it was an admirable sight. This wouldn’t have to happen if she could simply raze the fields, but the inviability of said action was made crystal clear by the two fedoras. 

“Yes, and I’m the only one that can save her. She’s your queen, too, right? You want her back, don’t you?”

The Snow Queen was, indeed, their queen also, and it occurred to Jinsoul that the flowers could have halted the Wandering Man’s advance through their fields. She thought it was something to consider. Betrayal and all. 

“T’was a starry, starry night,” the trumpet flower said. “A time when we lose our magic, young’un.”

Jinsoul trembled at the words, fury a raging fire through her body. She turned menacingly towards the beanstalk with what she was sure was a murderous smile. Electricity crackled between her fingers, sparking and jolting in tune with her anger.

“I…could have been spared from all of  _ this _ ? If we had just gone at  _ night _ ?” she snarled. 

The bean took a step back, one arm outstretched, palm out, as if attempting to hold her at bay. It wouldn’t be successful, that she was sure they were all certain of. “Now, Hatter. We can be civil—”

Electricity sizzled at her fingertips, running up the length of her arm so it shone gold in tendrils of lightning. “— _ Civil _ ? You dare to talk to  _ me  _ about  _ civility _ ? I will show  _ you _ civility. We could have left in the night and avoided  _ this _ mess, and yet I am stuck here conversing with  _ plants _ !”

“Yes, yes,” the bean said, gradually backing away. “But, they may know something.”

Miniscule bolts of lightning hit the ground, leaving blackness and soot in their wake. “They are normal  _ plants _ without voices in the night! What would they know?!”

Jinsoul let hell loose in the heights of her frustration, however, just inches from the bean’s left ear and into the side of the hill, dirt and grass exploding, the remainders set aflame. The air crackled with electricity, but the way she saw it, at least the bean kept her head. 

“Your magic is stronger than your father’s had ever been. How interesting,” a deep, booming voice said.

All the plants fell silent and Jinsoul turned on her heel with a final glare at the startled bean who did nothing but blink. She spun around just in time to see the ground beginning to crack mere feet before them, golden leaves and ivory branches abruptly shooting from the dirt and into the sky in a massive whirlwind. The girl sprung back and into her chest with a yelp and once again, Jinsoul was reminded of a kicked puppy. It wasn’t worth the effort to throw her aside, and anyway, she wasn’t doing any harm.

A moment later and an enormous tree was standing in their path, admittedly magnificent in all its bright and shining glory that didn’t make Jinsoul feel the need to empty her stomach of its contents as much as the flowers did. That was better than nothing she supposed. Although this new obstacle was clearly meant to be a greater pain in the side than the flowers could have ever been. Perhaps the flowers wouldn’t have been too horrendous.

“Jinsoul Hatter, is it not? Daughter of the Mad Hatter.”

Jinsoul could have sworn her eyes rolled to the back of her head and then some. The man was dead as a doornail in his grave and yet he continued to haunt her as relentlessly as a beast stalked its prey. He’d been a stubborn man in life, she presumed there was no reason for him to be different in death. Unfortunately. Who was this tree anyhow? It seemed to have more intelligence than the three girls combined, and it seemed to know her, which was a phenomenon considering she didn’t know who it was. 

She studied the tree with mild curiosity then decidedly shoved the earthling to the side. “Yes, yes. But it’s  _ Soul  _ Hatter at your service,” she said, mocking a flourishing bow then tossing her hat back onto her head. “Now, would you think it rude of me to ask as to whom  _ you _ may be?

“I would not consider it so. I am the Ivory Tree. Consequently, I know all. It is a great honor to meet you, Soul Hatter. You have the potential to become a hero to Wonderland.”

Jinsoul scoffed. “A  _ hero _ ? You must be mistaken, oh Tree of Knowledge. The only  _ hero _ I desire to be is one that caters to my wants and my wants only.” Her voice darkened. “Do not confuse me for my father. I have no  _ interest _ in the good of Wonderland.”

“Then explain to me, young one, why are you here? What brings you upon this journey if it is not for the good of Wonderland?”

Jinsoul bristled but kept her magic at bay. She could feel the tree’s power rolling off of it in waves strong enough that she knew, if she were to use her own magic against it, it would be the end of the Hatters. The magic emitting from it was ancient and powerful, a force to be reckoned with, and she realized that it was this that enchanted the flowers and gave them life. The desire to burn them alive grew stronger.

“I have a debt I owe the Cheshire Cat.  _ That _ is the  _ only _ reason why I am on this  _ filthy _ journey with these bothersome children,” she spat.

Hearing no chorus of protest at her words, she concluded that the dolts were too shocked to process what she’d said. It was a good thing, too. The more they kept their flapping mouths shut, the happier she would be. It was the way of the world. What was so shocking about a talking tree? They were in  _ Wonder _ land. Everything had the power to talk. If earthlings could magically appear from thin air and the offspring of Dee and Dum could make it to her door, then trees and flowers could talk. 

“I see. A debt. You seek the Snow Queen and the Wandering Man, and I hear that Jungeun is the only one who can save her? Come here, child,” the Ivory Tree said gently, beckoning with one large branch.

The girl stepped forward, albeit warily, looking miniscule in front of the tree that seemed to touch the clouds. Jinsoul felt an odd feeling tugging her forward towards the girl. What was it? What was it about this girl that made her  _ feel _ ? She’d never had to decipher her feelings before. Her emotions had always been simple. Glee, rage, melancholy. Nothing in between. But this  _ girl _ this, this  _ earthling _ brewed emotions far too complicated for her to understand. What was clear, however, was that she detested it.

“You are a strong one. There is a reason for you being here. Wonderland needs your strength in these times. You remind me much of the hero past. But there is much to you, more than the one before you. You will be the one to end this madness once and for all. Should you succeed.”

Jinsoul was aware of who the Tree was referring to. Alice, the blonde-haired, fair-skinned girl who’d worked with her own father to save Wonderland, the first earthling to make it to their land and anger the Queen of Hearts. After she had left, her father had gone mad. Whether it was because of her, she wasn’t certain, but it wasn’t as if Jinsoul cared. Of course not.

“I grant you all free passage through my fields. I wish you luck on your journey. You will need it. And Jinsoul?”

Jinsoul stabbed the point of her cane into the filth of dirt before her and raised her head. “Yes?”

“Take good care of her. But I do not need to tell you this, do I?”

Jinsoul sneered, swiping her hat off of her head and bowing mockingly. Who did this tree think it was? Calling her by her given name. She wasn’t about to allow a chunk of wood tell her what to do. The ground below her rumbled and the Tree began to sink into the grass and dirt, moments later, seeming as if it had never been there in the first place. There was a clear path ahead of them now, the flowers quiet as if magic had never touched them.

Everything was as good as it would get.

***

Jungeun wondered how close her sanity was to snapping on a scale of one to ten. She was pretty sure she was reaching the tenth mark. Or, maybe she’d already crossed it. Didn’t insane people not know that they were insane? She could easily be one of them. What if she was crazy and this was all one giant hallucination and she didn’t know it yet? A talking tree? A woman who could use magic? Control fire, water, earth, and air like the Last Airbender? A land where trees and flowers could talk and give her advice? It was insane. 

They had set up camp just on the outskirts of the forest of giant mushrooms that made her feel uneasy. Fire hadn’t been an issue as the Hatter had merely snapped her fingers and a practical bonfire appeared out of nowhere, suspiciously close to Gowon who yelped at the sudden heat and jumped back to avoid being burned into a crisp. 

Jungeun had glanced at the Hatter who only shrugged mockingly and fell backwards into a hammock that also appeared out of nowhere to catch her. Gowon and Olivia had left not long after to find food and water for the night and Jungeun was left to do nothing but sit in front of the fire, back against a nearby log.

“Why are you here, earthling?” The Hatter’s voice, abruptly right beside her ear, had her yelping, arm flying out in reflex, only to be met with nothing but purple smoke that dissipated as she made contact with it, the culprit reappearing a foot in front of her with the light of the fire behind her and arms clasped behind her back, a devilish grin across her face. “Too slow, puppy-like one.”

“P-Puppy?” Jungeun spluttered. 

“Beyond the point. Answer my  _ question _ , earthling. Why are you here?”

Jungeun frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I  _ mean _ , what is it that drives you to assist? The Snow Queen matters to you not. The villagers mean nothing to you. So why are you on this  _ meddlesome  _ journey? Possibly risking your life?”

Jungeun narrowed her eyes slightly. The Hatter looked carefully aloof, the crazy glint still evident in her eyes, but there was something in the less sarcastic way that she spoke that made her curious. Despite everything, at the end of the day, the Hatter was still a person, and people had layers. Even the shallowest kids at her school had layers. She suddenly wanted to make it her goal to peel back those layers and see what was underneath the snarky persona and otherwordly behavior. 

“Well, I mean, I don’t really have a choice, and if I’m stuck here, I might as well be useful, right? It’s not like I have anything better to do and…I always wanted to try being a hero.”

The Hatter cackled, head thrown back to the sky. “A  _ hero _ ? You? With what power? With what strength?”

“I can hold my own!” Jungeun blurted, flustered by the Hatter’s blatant discouragement.

It didn’t take her long to realize it was the wrong choice. Orange eyes flickered to hers and the Hatter began to stalk towards her, her movements predatory. One moment, she was a good distance away, and the next her forearm was against her neck, body pushed back against the thankfully soft stem of a mushroom, staring directly into eyes that burned brighter than the flames behind them. 

“Can you now?” the Hatter whispered, “I humbly  _ beg _ to differ.”

Her breath smelled like candy as if she’d shoveled down handfuls of lollipops and candy canes and chocolate bars just moments before. Not for the first time, she wondered what the extent of the Hatter’s powers was. How much magic did she have? Going off of movies and books, she was sure that there had to be some sort of limitation to the Hatter’s powers. She couldn’t be invincible, that wouldn’t be fair. 

And anyway, Gowon and Olivia made it clear that the Hatter’s powers could be drained by the Ivory Tree, which meant that there were more powerful entities out there. Having one of the most powerful magic wielders pin her up against a giant mushroom should have been terrifying, but at this point, Jungeun wasn’t sure if anything could scare her anymore. Then again, she wasn’t using enough force to hurt her and something in her fiery orange eyes told her that she wasn’t really intending to harm her.

“Not against you, maybe, but I know how to defend myself. I just can’t against magic.”

The Hatter leaned closer, the tip of her nose pressing against her own. “You are in  _ Wonderland _ , Earthling. Magic wielders are the  _ only _ enemies that you should ever fear. If you cannot defend yourself against magic, then you will not be alive for very long.” She paused, then leaned away, an unsettling grin forming across her mouth. “Although, your death would mean my freedom. Perhaps it is not such a horrid idea.”

Jungeun swallowed, the sudden shift in demeanor was frightening, and the manic glow had returned, encompassing the depths of flaming eyes. She was beginning to become aware of the press of the Hatter’s body against hers, her breath brushing against her lips, the unnatural warmth of her that sent some sort of odd shocks through her where skin met skin. Was it the magic she was feeling? The Hatter’s eyes locked with her own momentarily. Then, so quickly that she almost missed the movement, her gaze dropped down to her lips.

Abruptly, the Hatter sprang away from her as if she’d been burned, the flames behind her reacting to her alarm and rising higher into the night sky. Jungeun felt the tension in her body go slack and she leaned against the mushroom for support. It was quiet save for the fire crackling in the darkness.

The Hatter spun around, clearing her throat, and leaped into her hammock. “Well then, have fun with the mushroom.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I hope you're having as much fun reading this story as I am writing it! I've always enjoyed Alice in Wonderland, so I thought writing a story based off of that world would be interesting. For those of you who have commented, thank you very much! Reading your comments gives me the motivation to write, and I always read them before I begin writing. I hope you choose to stick around for the rest of this story!


	4. who are you?

Jinsoul despised the night, more so than she despised the Cat and his sickening, spiraling eyes and his putrid, purple coat. If the Cat ever dared to appear in front of her in the moonlight, she was certain that would be the day she would finally be rid of him, once and for all. Unfortunately, he wasn’t particularly stupid, so she doubted that night would ever come. A deep shame, it was.

She glanced down at the hat she was sowing, a bright red one, the color of blood and war and flames, made even more vivid in the light of the fire. It was boring. She didn’t like boring. Boring meant room for meddling little parrots in her head, squawking things they shouldn’t, and hidden away so she couldn’t so much as wring their scrawny necks to shut them up. Bullies, the lot of them.

The earthling and the bean were asleep on the filth of all the grass and dirt and insects. It was fitting, she supposed. Filth on filth. The beanstalk, however, was awake, leaning against the stem of a mushroom, staring into the fire. Now there was something potentially interesting. The beanstalk was dark and quiet and  _ broody _ . She reminded her of a cranky old man.

Jinsoul giggled quietly and swiped her top hat off of her head. She carelessly dropped the unfinished one into it and sat up properly in the hammock. The fire still burned bright. With a giddy snap of her fingers, she watched as tendrils of flames curled towards the beanstalk, weaving into each other to form a fearsome thing, a luminescent beast in the night. She waited for the look of horror, the scream that would make this exciting, the one that would scatter the parrots in her head, only to be disappointed by the ever constant look of stoicism on the beanstalk’s face. …why wasn’t she afraid? 

The flames were close enough to burn, and it wasn’t as if Jinsoul had ever shown restraint in maiming any of the three nuisances, and yet, the beanstalk seemed unafraid. Interesting. Not exciting, but interesting enough. Had she shown too much mercy? Should she make an example out of the beanstalk? The more she thought about it, the more it infuriated her.

Should she burn her? No. No, no, no. That wouldn’t do. Burning her would only add onto the list of annoyances. A shame, but a reality all the same. She clenched her hand into a fist with a sigh of disappointment and her precious artwork exploded quietly into harmless sparks that burned away before they so much as touched the ground. The beanstalk was looking at her now, calm and composed. She would change that.

“Who  _ are  _ you, Beanstalk?”

“…Olivia.”

Jinsoul grinned and wagged her finger. “No, no. Your  _ real _ name, Beanstalk. I’m no imbecile. I know false names when I hear them, and  _ yours _ is most definitely false.”

The beanstalk watched her with wary eyes. They reminded her of a dog’s eyes. Was it a dog? No, it was too sharp to be a mere mutt’s. No, it was a wolf’s. She could stomach wolves, more than she could stomach dogs. Although, the thought of wolves did remind her of something she’d heard long ago. Nevertheless, this beanstalk was intelligent. Intelligent and quiet, a dangerous combination. It was also a combination that she could respect. Possibly. If she could behave.

“Hyejoo. My given name is Hyejoo.” Her expression hardened. “But I go by Olivia.”

Jinsoul felt a twinge of excitement at the hint of a challenge. Now, this was something fun. She leaped out of the hammock, launching herself high into the air, and alighted just a foot away from the beanstalk. Would the beanstalk be willing to play? She doubted it. She didn’t look like the type to enjoy fun and games, but no matter. She would make her. One way or another.

“Follow me, then,  _ Olivia _ . Unless you want to wake your little friend? And the earthling? You wouldn’t want that, would you?”

The earthling and the bean were still fast asleep despite her rambling. Stupidity went a long way, she supposed. The beanstalk shot her something akin to a glare, but acquiesced, standing up gracefully as if she hadn’t been sitting in the same place for a better half of the night. She watched as the girl quietly made her way to the bean and fixed the ragged blanket draped over her scrawny frame before turning back toward her. 

“Lead the way, Hatter.”

Jinsoul tipped her hat and swiveled towards the dense forest of giant mushrooms. How annoying. She eyed the one standing arrogantly before her briefly, a red one with white spots. Then, with a careless wave of her hand, she felled it. Felled that one, and the one after that, and the one after that. Silently, however. She couldn’t go back on her word, after all. And anyway, waking the bean and the earthling would be nothing but a nuisance.

“Was that necessary?” the beanstalk asked once the fallen had settled.

“Is anything necessary?” Jinsoul sang, skipping onto the path she’d created. She paused for a moment, peering down at a mushroom. She hummed. “Maybe I should have cooked them instead.”

Despite the sheer amount of mushrooms she’d massacred, she knew she hadn’t made so much as a dent in the forest. The mushrooms would grow back by midday. Not that she cared. It wasn’t her concern what happened to the overgrown fungi. They were useless things anyway. At least they didn’t meddle like talking flowers.

“What is it that you want, Hatter?” the beanstalk asked, her footsteps coming to a halt behind her.

Jinsoul twisted around, her coat whipping through the air and her hat falling askew on her head. “You are from the Dum lineage, correct?”

“Yes.”

“The Dum lineage, an old name,” she mused. “You have quite a history to live up to.”

Olivia’s brows twitched minutely. They reminded her of caterpillars. She wanted to skewer them off of her face. “Not unlike you.”

Jinsoul sneered. “True, both of our surnames are rather  _ disgustingly  _ drenched in Wonderland’s little history, but our circumstances are a tad…disparate. Regarding blood, of course.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

Jinsoul hummed, stepping around the beanstalk. “Now, now, we both know  _ that’s  _ not true.”

The beanstalk stooped to pluck a pebble off the ground, rolling it between her thumb and forefinger. “Do we?”

“Well, unless the little birdie I cooked for dinner was mistaken.”

The beanstalk fumbled with the pebble momentarily before allowing it to fall out of her grasp. It didn’t make so much as a sound. Jinsoul smiled. 

“And what did the ‘little birdie’ tell you?”

“Oh, nothing too  _ scandalous _ . Simply that you are not of the Dum bloodline.” 

The beanstalk clearly stiffened, as if her limbs had turned to lead. “Your bird was wrong.”

“But I did not even tell you the best part. I also heard that you were, in fact, found in the depths of the Briar Woods by Tweedledum.” She delighted at the undeniable shock in the beanstalk’s eyes. “As a wolf pup.”

“It’s nothing but a myth,” the girl snapped. “I didn’t realize the Hatter was so gullible.”

“I am  _ many _ things, Beanstalk, but gullible is not one of them. Now, did I not warn you about lying to me?”

“I’m only here because Gowon asked me of it. With all due respect,” her voice dropped to something akin to a growl, “do not push me, Hatter.”

Jinsoul felt the challenge spark something within her. Finally, a worthy distraction. She jerked forward with an excited smile until she could feel the beanstalk’s breath against her lips. Hot and angry. She loved it. “Or what?” she hissed. “You’ll  _ bite _ me?” This time, she saw it clearly, the flash of gold in her eyes. “So it  _ is  _ true. Wolf’s blood does run in your veins.”

The beanstalk stumbled backward as if attempting to ward her off. Why? It wouldn’t do her any good. The truth was there for her to grab, and Jinsoul hunted it down like a hound after its prey. The thrill of it was invigorating.

“I said this before, and I will say it again. I do not know what you are talking about.”

“Oh, but you do,” Jinsoul said, advancing towards her. “But does the bean know? After all, the two of you are the  _ best  _ of friends.”

“Don’t.”

“So she doesn’t know. How  _ trusting  _ of you. Those with Wolf’s blood are said to be dangerous, is it the same for you?”

“No, I am no danger to anyone. I have—” 

Jinsoul watched as the beanstalk rummaged through her pockets. The panic on her face was delectable, almost good enough for her to let bygones be bygones and allow the both of them to rest for the remainder of the night, but alas, self-control had never been one of her virtues.

“Looking for this?”

The pendant dangling between her fingers was shaped like a crescent moon. Her least favorite kind of moon. She itched to destroy it. But she couldn’t. Not now, anyway. It was something of value, and she had an inkling that it wouldn’t take to being destroyed quite so easily. She could feel its magic tingling where her skin touched it, despite how pintsized it was, which meant that there was a considerable amount of magic stored inside of it. Doubtlessly in order to keep the Wolf’s blood subdued.

The beanstalk looked fearful. Jinsoul knew that look like the top of her hat. The girl was trembling now, and she could see the yellow sheen of her eyes that glowed in the darkness. Beasts were said to be the most dangerous when cornered. Maybe she should aggravate the beanstalk further, perhaps to have a glimpse of a fang or a claw. That would be amusing, no doubt. However, however, revealing something like that so early on would also mean less material for later distractions. She wouldn’t be so much of a plaything then, and Jinsoul had a tendency to get bored. 

She scrutinized the girl for another moment, then, with a disappointed sigh, she tossed the pendant towards the beanstalk and turned away, levitating herself back down the path. “You’re an entertaining one, Beanstalk. I have an inkling that we will get along just fine. Good evening to you.”

The mushrooms were growing back, the fallen already decaying and turning into dust, no doubt to fertilize the land or something foolish like that. The light of the fire coaxed her back into the campsite and she surveyed the two continuously slumbering forms on the ground. It was a remorseful thing that none of the wild animals had decided to choose them as a midnight snack.

Before she hopped back into the hammock, she conjured twenty-three more pillows and the largest blanket she could think of. It reminded her of what she could have had if the earthling had never stumbled into her land. Her thoughts drifted to the beanstalk who had looked terrified of her as if seeing her for the first time. She would think twice about crossing her from now on. The thought of that soothed her. She sunk into the pillows with a content sigh.

She would sleep well tonight.

***

Jungeun had never walked so much in her eighteen years of life. Although, she supposed that walking was the least of her concerns when she was surrounded by mushrooms the height of skyscrapers and blades of grass taller than trees.

The morning had been the most peaceful one she’d had since she’d been thrown into Wonderland, admittedly because it turned out that Gowon wasn’t a morning person, but Jungeun had also noticed that Olivia was quieter than usual. Maybe it was because she wasn’t used to sleeping out in the open? 

Jungeun was accustomed to it, she had gone camping on several occasions before, but she was aware that many weren’t comfortable with sleeping with nothing but the sky to blanket them. Aside from the silence, she had also noticed how much more tense she was. Jungeun had gotten used to Olivia’s loose, almost lumbering way of walking in the short span of time she’d known her, but now, the girl looked like a soldier marching into battle.

Gowon had obviously noticed it, too, as she spent much more time clinging onto Olivia’s arm than she did by Jungeun’s side. She didn’t mind it. She was used to walking alone, after all. What she wasn’t used too, though, was the Hatter’s oddly chirpy mood. It had caught her attention since the moment she’d woken, and her suspicions had only continued to grow since then.

She sped up just enough to match pace with the Hatter, although her pace was ridiculously fast. “Did something happen last night?”

The Hatter smiled lazily. “Nothing that concerns you, earthling. Nothing you would understand with that mushroom-sized brain of yours.”

She frowned, not at the Hatter’s insult, but at the confirmation that something had, in fact, happened while she was asleep. “You did something, didn’t you? To Olivia?”

“Olivia?” she said as if she were tasting the name on her tongue for the first time. “Oh, yes, yes.  _ Olivia _ . We had a small little chat in the evening she and I, while you and the bean were slumbering in the filth, that’s all,” she said, carelessly launching her cane into the air only to balance it on the tip of her finger. “I’ve found that I’m not too talented a conversationalist, however. They say that actions speak louder than words, but it seems that they don’t know that words bite harder than teeth ever could.”

Before Jungeun could respond to the Hatter’s strange riddle, the dense trail that had been wounding between the mushrooms abruptly spilled out into a large clearing. For no better word, it was beautiful. 

The dirt path became a cobbled one that led to a small cottage that lay in the middle of it all, smoke spiraling from its chimney in little ribbons, surrounded by wildflowers of various hues. There was a pile of giant mushroom stems propped up against one side of the cottage—perhaps they served the same purpose as wood?—and not too far from where they stood, was a pen full of the most colorful rabbits she had ever seen. 

“Coney Cottage,” Gowon whispered, stepping into the clearing. 

“Coney Cottage?”

Olivia stood beside her and nodded. “Home of the March Hare.”

Jungeun immediately found her attention alighting on the Hatter. In the books, the Hatter and the March Hare had been good friends, ones who took tea together and symbolized the madness that was ever so present in Wonderland. It seemed as if at least a generation had elapsed since the book’s creation. Did that mean that the March Hare would be someone else? Just as the Hatter was?

“Do not  _ look  _ at me like that,” the Hatter said with a sneer. “The Mad Hatter was companion of the March Hare. Not me. That old thing turned into rabbit stew eons ago. And no, I have not kept in touch.”

Jungeun raised a brow at the long-winded explanation, only for the Hatter to abruptly slap her hand across her mouth. She hardly had time to gasp. The Hatter looked alert, like a predator that had caught the scent of its prey, or perhaps even prey that had caught the scent of its predator. She glanced at Olivia and Gowon to see that even they seemed wary. 

The Hatter’s expression curved into a devilish smile. “It seems that the new Hare has acquired powers of their own. How  _ very _ interesting.”

“There are two entities,” Olivia warned. “Both powerful.”

“Even better,” the Hatter purred.

Jungeun frowned and tugged the Hatter’s hand away from her mouth, momentarily surprised at the uncharacteristic softness of it despite the sheer destruction it was capable of. It was at that moment that the door to the cottage flung open, and a red carpet shot out from its depths, unrolling itself along the cobbled path until it tapped the toe of the Hatter’s boot and fell limp.

A girl stepped onto the carpet. She wore a suit of sorts, a red dress shirt and a black vest with a matching bowtie. Her hair was long and dark, but what made it bizarre was the golden straw weaved into it, some sticking out in certain places as if they didn’t belong. She strode down the red carpet with the air of royalty, her arms outstretched in a somewhat welcoming manner, and walking beside her, graceful and elegant, was a cat with yellow streaks for fur, closely resembling the appearance of the Cheshire Cat, only slighter in frame and of a different color. 

“My rabbits sensed a disturbance today. Was it you?” she stopped a mere inch away from the Hatter who didn’t so much as blink. “Or was it you, you, or you?” 

Her finger landed on the tip of Jungeun’s nose, eyes the color of coal boring into hers. She didn’t dare move a muscle. However, something that felt similar to a static shock forced her to flinch back, while the girl jolted as if she’d been electrocuted. Jungeun looked at the Hatter just in time to catch blue tendrils of electricity petering out on the tips of her fingers, a menacing half-grin balancing on the corners of her lips.

“Rule number one,” the Hatter said with a flourish of her hand. “You do not  _ touch  _ the earthling unless it is to kill.”

“How chivalrous of you,” Jungeun muttered, though she went unnoticed.

The girl’s eyes widened almost comically. “Earthling? As in Alice’s kind? Oh, pardon me, I had no idea,” she said, bowing so low Jungeun almost expected her to fold in half. “And…the Hatter? You are the Hatter aren’t you?”

The Hatter swept her hat off of her head and returned the bow, a too-wide grin on her mouth. “The one and only, now, unfortunately. Though perhaps not so unfortunate at all.” She paused as if in thought. Then, she snapped her fingers, pointing at the girl. “And you would be the March Hare, unless I am mistaken.”

“Not at all. The March Hare I am, though I simply go by Heejin. And this is my Cheshirean friend. Hyun? Please greet the Hatter. It’s not every day we have such prestigious visitors.”

Jungeun watched as the cat seemed to glare at Heejin, it’s orange-flecked eyes reproachful before a cloud of color-matching smoke filled the air. Did everyone in Wonderland have to be so dramatic? She shielded her face as best she could, watching Gowon do the same, the Hatter and Olivia doing nothing to protect themselves. 

“What did I say about calling me that?” the new voice said.

It was a disinterested kind of voice, a lazy drawl that seemed to float through the air like smoke in the air or clouds in the sky. Somehow, it carried a sense of danger to it, too, something that sent shivers down the spine, and Jungeun wrapped her arms around herself, feeling the urge to protect herself if nothing else would.

“My apologies, my apologies. I’ll remember next time,” the March Hare said.

“You say that every time.”

The cat-turned-girl ran her fingers through her hair, black streaked with lightning yellow, and her eyes looked to be glowing more fiercely orange against the porcelain of her skin rather than the grey of her fur, drifting over them, as one would scan a mildly irritating swarm of gnats in the distance. Jungeun couldn’t help but feel uneasy beneath her gaze.

She was wearing a suit similar to Heejin’s, though hers consisted of a tailcoat instead of a vest and an orange dress shirt rather than a red one, a tie replacing the bowtie that completed Heejin’s attire.

Heejin threw an arm around the cat’s shoulders. “Yes, well, anyhow. Don’t be rude to our guests. Come now, introduce yourself.”

The cat ignored her and slipped out from beneath her arm. Her steps were silent as she stalked towards the Hatter, and in a split second, she was pressed against her, face against her neck. The Hatter made no move to bar her. It was only a moment later that the catgirl, whatever she was, stepped away, expression showcasing mild irritation. “I smell the Cat on you. Is he not dead yet?”

The Hatter shook her head. “Sadly, no. I have been trying for  _ many _ years, but alas, he just won’t die. But my question is, who are you?”

“Hyunjin.”

“No, no, not your  _ name _ . I couldn’t care less about that. I mean,” this time, the Hatter stepped closer, forehead pressing against Hyunjin’s, “who are  _ you _ ?”

Jungeun couldn’t help but shiver at the way Hyunjin’s eyes flashed a vivid orange, fiery and inhuman. The Hatter didn’t so much as flinch, and though Jungeun couldn’t see her expression from where she was standing, she knew she was smiling. The tension only continued to grow until the Hare stepped in between them, shaking her head.

“I asked you to greet them, Hyun. Not fight them. But when do you ever listen to me.” She turned to the Hatter with alarming speed. “Please excuse her, she gets like this when someone wakes her from her nap, and particularly when someone mentions her bloodline. As to who she is, well, she is the Cheshire Cat’s…great niece? Something along those lines. I can never remember.”

“That would explain the magic around here,” Olivia said, and although her words had been nothing more than a murmur, it bought her attention. 

Hyunjin’s words were sharp. “And who are you?” 

Jungeun had always been good at assessing the powerplay between people. It was something that had naturally come to her throughout her experiences of constant moving, a gradual skill that developed the more groups she became forced to interact with. 

The Hatter and the Cheshire Cat were clearly at the top of the hierarchy, with their lesser adversaries being Hyunjin and Olivia, in that particular order, and beneath them being Gowon. Heejin, she wasn’t sure of yet. She seemed to be less prone to violence than the others, but she had a feeling that the March Hare was more powerful than she let on. 

She herself was nowhere near the pyramid of power. She didn’t want to be, not when she didn’t have a family title to support her, or the power of magic to defend her. Attempting to become a part of this odd powerplay would only result in her being skewered like the Cheshire Cat’s false body, oozing dark chocolate on top of a giant mushroom. Or something like that. What did she know? It would probably be something more creative than that.

Gowon stepped forward, smiling. “The title you would know us by would be Dee and Dum. However, you can simply call us Gowon and Olivia.”

“Dee and Dum. As in Tweedledee and Tweedledum?” Heejin asked. She hopped in place, from one foot to the other. “Oh, I’ve heard so many stories. Are they your parents? Uncles?”

“Parents,” Gowon said, her voice proud. Then, her expression turned thoughtful, as if something had only just occurred to her. “You know, Liv, did we ever tell them that we were leaving?”

Olivia stared at her blankly, then slowly looked away, brows furrowing. “I don’t recall.”

“Well, now, we have been rude for far too long,” Heejin said with a resounding clap. “Come in, come in. We welcome you to our humble abode.”

The March Hare turned heel, military style, with a click of her boots, and strode back down the red carpet, whistling an unfamiliar, but light-hearted tune. It was only then that Hyunjin turned away, and Jungeun finally felt as if she could breathe. She had a feeling that everyone else, excluding the Hatter, of course, had more or less the same sentiment.

The cottage and the flowers and the rabbits were beautiful, but what struck her the most were the trees scattered around the clearing with their emerald leaves and mahogany branches. They were normal-sized, ordinary, not flashy or outrageous like everything else in Wonderland. They reminded her of home. 

She still didn’t have the slightest idea on how she’d ended up in a supposedly fairytale land with characters who weren’t even in the original story. Perhaps she really had died. Or maybe the tea that fortuneteller had given her was actually some kind of psychodelic drug. Whatever it was, it didn’t seem like it was going to end anytime soon, and just because she was in this strange place didn’t mean she was willing to just lay down and die. She’d keep going. For now, at least.

The group came to a halt, just before the door, although Hyunjin slipped inside without a second glance, a cat once more. So her flashy reveal had been intentional, despite her play at nonchalance. Jungeun hadn’t even noticed that the girl had reverted back into her feline form.

Heejin’s impossibly dark eyes twinkled, mysterious in every way. Nothing was visible beyond the threshold of the door, despite the fact that it was wide open, only shadowy murkiness, which didn’t make sense because Jungeun had spotted the windows wide open just moments before and the sun was still shining brightly in the sky, not a cloud in sight.

The March Hare offered them a charming smile, and with a flourish of her hand, gestured them inside. 

“Welcome, to Coney Cottage.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that we're already at the fourth chapter of this story, I'm wondering which character you guys like the best so far and why. Although, I do have an idea of who it probably is haha. Thank you for taking the time to read this story! I very much appreciate it!


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